Sinners Discussion with Alise Chaffins

A quick note: you'll notice that my camera feed is missing in this episode. I encountered an unexpected technical issue with Zoom during the recording that prevented my video from being captured, though thankfully, Alise's video and all audio are unaffected. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and I will immediately implement new checks to prevent this issue in the future. The conversation itself is fantastic, and I hope you enjoy it!

In this episode of The Austin B Media Podcast, I sat down with five-time guest Alise Chaffins to discuss Sinners after seeing it a couple of weeks ago.

What's The Movie About?

Ryan Coogler's latest film, Sinners, is set in 1932 Louisiana as brothers Smoke and Stack arrive to open their own juke joint.

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Chapters

• 00:00 - Introduction

• 02:21 - Recommendations and Recent Watches

• 06:37 - Sinners' Central Premise

• 09:23 - Our First Thoughts Coming Out of the Theater

• 13:26 - Our Final Rating for Sinners

• 14:03 - Who Should Watch Sinners?

• 15:59 - Viewing Experience: Dolby Atmos, IMAX, and the Importance of Sound

• 18:44 - Spoiler Warning

• 19:12 - The "I Lied to You" Musical Scene

• 22:52 - Vampirism as a Metaphor

• 23:47 - Shared Histories of Oppression

• 28:28 - Layered Themes, Religion, Delta Slim, and Rewatch Value

• 31:03 - Deeper Dive into the Title

• 34:51 - The Most Compelling Characters

• 40:27 - Plot Twists

• 46:41 - Ryan Coogler's Style

• 47:51 - The Chinese Characters & Subtle Historical Layers

• 52:32 - Is Sinners Ryan Coogler's Blank Check Movie?

• 55:32 - Box Office Reception, Original Movies vs. IP, and Industry Narrative

• 01:01:39 - The Technical Elements of Sinners

• 01:06:25 - Interpreting the Ending(s)

• 01:14:35 - The Most Impactful Deaths

• 01:16:30 - The Vampiric Lure, Villains with Understandable Motives, and Appropriation

• 01:23:51 - Austin's Reassesment & Effectiveness of Social Commentary

• 01:30:30 - Final Thoughts

• 01:33:03 - Where to Find Alise

• 01:33:49 - Outro

Where to Watch Sinners

You can watch Sinners in theaters now. Additionally, you'll be able to watch the film on digital platforms starting on June 3rd, 2025, on VOD and digital platforms, followed by a 4K Blu-ray, Blu-ray, and DVD release on July 8th, 2025.

Where to Find Our Recommendations

Alise's recommendation - All seasons of The Handmaid's Tale are streaming on Hulu.

My recommendation: Stitch! The Movie is streaming on Di